Founding
and Life member David Irwin died on January 13, 2009. He
was 89. David lived a long life highlighted with many
accomplishments. David was born on January 1, 1920 in Des
Moines, Iowa; he served in the air corps during WWll, went to
divinity school for two years and eventually realized he was an
atheist. From 1976 to 1984 he shared his life
with his lover Dick Hewetson (a fellow Minnesota Atheist
member). Together they co-founded the Quatrefoil Library,
dedicated to the collection and preservation of information about
gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and other sexual minorities
(GLBT). They started the library with their own collection
of 1,500 books relating to homosexuality. In 1986 Matt
Stark, also a Minnesota Atheists member and director of the Minnesota
Civil Liberties Union (MCLU), rented them space in the MCLU building
to display their books. The library never looked back. This
is only one of three such lending libraries in the country
dedicated to GLBT issues. It is open to the public daily
and has educated the public and saved many GLBT lives over the years.
The first part of David's life was that of a gay man trying to live
as a straight man. He married his high school sweetheart,
a woman, and had two children. This was in the 1940s and
after a few years they divorced. David lived as a closeted gay
man until the start of the Quatrefoil library. When the
public announcement of the library was made, he used this as an
opportunity to let his family know about his sexuality. The
reaction was mixed. His two children rejected him. Others
reacted with love and understanding. For two of his family members,
who David cared for deeply, it was a non event. After that
David and Dick came out to the GLBT community as atheists. But they
still had more educating to do. They both have won awards
for their work founding the Quatrefoil where they always
mentioned their association with Minnesota Atheists. David
and Dick separated, but worked together on the library and remanded
good friends. David was an avid book reader. He
played Bridge as often as possible and was a regular at the
Quatrefoil. His legacy is he lived his life to its fullest
and he eventually freed himself from the shackles of society
conformity and used his experience to make a difference for the lives
of others. The world is a better place because of
David. We were honored to have him as a member. Memorials
are requested for the Quatrefoil Library, 1619 Dayton Ave.,
Suite 105, St. Paul, MN 55104 (651)
641-0969. www.quatrefoillibrary.org.